


Life with Bokuto

by 104



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Domestic, Domestic Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Reader-Insert, Romance, Romantic Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-18
Updated: 2020-12-06
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:26:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27091216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/104/pseuds/104
Summary: As I was tying it, it suddenly dawned on me that - “You know, you don’t need a tie, Koutarou.”“I want to look as smart as Kuroo!”“You and Kuroo are completely different people!”He gasped. “Are you calling me dumb?”“No, Koutarou!” I couldn’t help laughing. “I’m just not used to seeing you look so professional.”I stepped back to admire my handiwork.“Hm…not bad,” I admitted.“Not bad?” He had that glint in his eye again.“Not bad,” I repeated. “Could be better.”He tilted his head up. “But could be worse.”I obliged and leaned in, but at the last moment I undid the tie.“Sorry. You’ve kept them waiting long enough!”I laughed as the kisses rained down on my face.In this shameless self-insert, you and your son Ko are preparing for Bokuto’s birthday party. However, as the night wears on, new questions arise…How did you and Bokuto meet? Why are you so close to Akaashi? And most importantly, what did Kuroo get Bokuto?!?! Read on to find out!
Relationships: Bokuto Koutarou & Reader, Bokuto Koutarou/Reader
Kudos: 36





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I originally started Haikyuu for Akaashi and Bokuto, so I’m very glad that I was able to write a story about them! However, this was a bit difficult for me considering that I love Bokuto, Akaashi, and Bokuaka equally. I guess the good thing about fiction is that you can have many different versions of reality, and they can all be true. Happy reading!

When the alarm rang, I pounced on it so quickly I was afraid the movement would wake him instead of the sound. That’s what you get for planning a surprise! I turned around guilty, but thankfully he seemed undisturbed. A smile lingered on his lips, but his breathing was deep and even. He’d always been a happy dreamer.  
My lips were halfway to his cheek when I shook myself out of it. No distractions! I closed the door guiltily behind me. Sorry, Koutarou, I prayed. Please forgive me.  
Kosei was already awake when I knocked on the door. He was practically vibrating in bed, smiling from ear to ear.  
“Ready to make Dad some pancakes?” I asked.  
“Yeah!” He jumped out of bed and gave me a quick hug before running to the kitchen like a whirlwind. He’d probably stayed up all night.  
“All right, all right! Wait for me.”

He was talking so fast while we were adding the ingredients that I was afraid we would forget something. “Do you think Dad’ll be surprised? Can I have some? When’s the party? Who’s coming? Do you think he’ll like my card?” He mixed the batter with such gusto that a few drops splattered onto the counter.  
I took a towel and wiped them away. “I think he’ll be super surprised! And yes, the party is tonight. Akaashi, Hinata, Kuroo…everyone you know is coming!” He watched as I poured it into the pan. He’d tried before, but he always wanted to make…  
“Can we make Dad a monster pancake?” He had the same mischievous gleam in his eye that Koutarou sometimes had when he proposed eating out instead of cooking.  
“Sure, Ko.” I watched as batter filled up half the pan. Ko, never change.

“Ready?”  
He nodded. I pushed the door open.  
“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Koutarouuu…”  
“Daddd,” harmonized Ko as he carried the tray with unusual solemnity.  
He stirred, then sat up. “Hey! What’s this?”  
Ko jumped up next to him. “Monster pancakes!”  
The singular pancake in question lay on the tray in front of him, almost eclipsing the plate. Ko had added a whip cream frowny face to further the “monster” image, and it scowled up at him.  
“My favorite! I love monster pancakes!”  
The excited look on his face was so endearing I couldn’t resist any longer.  
I leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.  
“Yuck!”

“Do you have any birthday wishes?” I brushed some of the hair back from his forehead.  
We were sitting on the bed, the pancake long demolished.  
“Hm…” He put his arm around me. Not to be outdone, Ko nestled further in with us.  
“Just to have a good day. I already have everything else.”  
“Something I can buy, Koutarou,” I laughed.  
“Hm…” He made a serious expression, then relaxed. “Nope! Can’t think of anything.”  
“Ok. Well…tell me if you change your mind.”  
“What are you up to today?”  
I turned away so he couldn’t see me smile. “Oh, you know…the usual. Getting ready for the best party you’ve ever seen.”  
“Party?” He sat up.  
“Yeah. So hurry back after practice! Everyone’s coming.”  
He stared. “How long have you kept this a secret?”  
“As long as I could. Now get ready! I don’t want to make you late.” I gave him a slight push, which Ko happily copied.  
“All right, all right.” He lifted the covers and slipped out of bed.  
“Huh. Party, huh,” he kept repeating dazedly on the way to the bathroom.

Ko and I went out to run some errands after Koutarou left. All in all, we were expecting about 20 people…I wondered if there was enough room for everyone or if we’d have to eat on the patio.  
Besides the Black Jackals, a large number of his old high school teammates, managers, and classmates were attending, not to mention assorted others…  
I’d decided against a surprise party. The uncertainty was too cruel, and I couldn’t bear the thought of Koutarou thinking everyone had forgotten. Even imagining the crestfallen expression on his face hurt my heart a little. Plus, Ko could never keep a secret!  
“Is it bad I already told Dad what I wrote in my card? I wanted it to be a surprise!” I looked down at Ko, who was clutching the grocery list with such an earnest expression on his face.  
I ruffled his hair.  
“Hey!”

I was struggling with a pot in the kitchen when I heard the door open a little earlier than usual. Did they cut practice short?  
“How was practice?” I called.  
“Hm…difficult to say.”  
“Akaashi!” At this, I heard a door slam down the hall and the pattering of excited feet.  
“Hi. I gave you a call but I guess you were cooking. How are things going?” He peeked under the pot lid.  
“Ah, don’t look too closely,” I said at the same time Ko took a flying leap at him. “Akaashi!” He picked him up mid-swing.  
“Ko, remember to ask first!” He was getting a little too big to be jumping into people’s arms without warning.  
“Oh, yeah. Is this ok, ’kaashi?” Ko asked seriously. He already had both arms around his neck.  
“I’m so sorry for our hyper child,” I tried to say with my eyes, but he just laughed.  
“Of course!” He looked around.  
“Need any help?”  
“Hm…I think I’ve got the cooking down…”  
We looked at each other for a long moment, then burst into laughter.  
“I’m in so much trouble! Please help me.”  
It was no secret that cooking was not my forte. Child wrangling, maybe, but cooking…?  
“Trade you?” he suggested. I handed him the spoon gratefully.  
“Sorry, Ko, looks like you’ll have to get down now.” He set him gently on the ground. “Why don’t you help your mom?”  
“That’s right! We have plenty of decorations to hang up.”  
I sorted through the bags on the counter. We’d gotten a string of gold Happy Birthday letters, black streamers…I handed him a pack and he scampered off.  
“Where are you going? We need to hang them in the living room!” I called after him.  
“Okay, Mom!” came very faintly from the bedroom.  
I turned to Akaashi, who was already managing the food preparations much more confidently than I had been. “Thank you so much, Akaashi…you’re an angel,” I said.  
“I know.” I could hear the smile in his voice.

Koutarou returned a few hours later.  
“Honey, I- Akaashi!” He almost jumped a foot in the air when he saw us in the kitchen.  
“Welcome home!” Akaashi and I chimed in. I was once again assisting with the culinary endeavors.  
“Why don’t you go change? Everyone’s almost here!” I stacked a dish in the sink.  
“I’m sorry, practice ran really late…um, I…” He lingered in the hallway.  
“Get going!”  
Koutarou started. “Thank you, Akaashi!” He sped down the hall shedding clothing items as he went.  
“He never changes,” Akaashi sighed.  
I nodded. “But we love him.”

He was still in the shower when the first guests arrived.  
“Long time, no see.”  
“Kuroo!” He was holding a large bag and smiling a little more devilishly than the situation called for. I reminded myself to tell Koutarou not to open it when Ko was around as I took it to the gift table.  
“You look professional, as usual.” Akaashi walked over drying his hands on a towel.  
Kuroo looked around. “Oh? And where’s mini Ko?”  
“Here!” Again with the door slam and the footsteps! I looked to Akaashi for guidance when Ko practically leapt into Kuroo’s arms, but he just shook his head as if to say, “Don’t worry about it.”  
“Little Ko! Maybe not so little,” Kuroo said. Ko nodded vigorously.  
“We made Dad a monster pancake and then we went to the store and then Akaashi came and then Dad came back,” he recited. “Dad’s taking a shower. It’s been forever! It’s been a million years!”  
Kuroo raised an eyebrow.  
“We had an exciting day,” I explained.  
“Looks like it. How are you doing?”  
“I’m all right! Akaashi did all of the cooking, anyway. Is Kenma coming?”  
“He’ll be here in a little bit. He just got caught up in some work.” Ko squirmed in his arms.  
“All right, all right! Let’s go.” They walked out to the patio chattering like old friends.

Next came the team.  
“Sorry we’re late!” Hinata led the apologetic charge inside, embracing me on the way in a chorus of “Hello’s!” and “Hi’s!” Some of them still had wet hair from the rush.  
“It’s all right! Koutarou’s still in the shower, and Kuroo’s out on the porch!” They filed out diligently.  
“Speaking of which…” He’d already spent about thirty minutes in the bathroom. I should probably make sure he hadn’t drowned.  
I went down the hall and knocked on the door. “Koutarou?”  
“Yeah!” I pushed the door open. He was sitting forlornly on the bed looking at his unwound tie in the mirror.  
“Need some help?”  
He nodded, looking a little like a chastised kid. I reached for the tie.  
“What would I do without you?”  
I felt my heart swell a little. His smile never failed to startle me - like watching the sun come out from behind a cloud.  
“Have you just been sitting like this for the last twenty minutes?”  
He pouted. “I’d never keep my guests waiting!”  
“Sure, sure. Whatever you say.”  
As I was tying it, it suddenly dawned on me that - “You know, you don’t need a tie, Koutarou.”  
“I want to look as smart as Kuroo!”  
“You and Kuroo are completely different people!”  
He gasped. “Are you calling me dumb?”  
“No, Koutarouuu!” I couldn’t help laughing. “I’m just not used to seeing you look so professional.”  
I stepped back to admire my handiwork.  
“Hm…not bad,” I admitted.  
“Not bad?” He had that glint in his eye again.  
“Not bad,” I repeated. “Could be better.”  
He tilted his head up. “But could be worse.”  
I obliged and leaned in, but at the last moment I undid the tie.  
“Sorry. You’ve kept them waiting long enough!”  
I laughed as the kisses rained down on my face.

Friends continued trickling in as the night went on.  
After the tie hang-up, Koutarou became the perfect host, bouncing from group to group with his usual energy. We were about to sit down to dinner when Kenma arrived bearing his apologies. He’d had some work, but it was over now, he said with grim satisfaction.  
We’d just gotten settled again when Tsukishima arrived. He mumbled an apology and tossed his gift onto the table.  
“Well, look what the cat dragged in!”  
I thought I saw his eye twitch.

Ko was nearly asleep facedown on the table, which Kuroo was treating as his own personal victory.  
“Kid finally met his match in Uncle Kuroo,” he chortled.  
“Don’t give yourself too much credit,” I whispered. Ko’s eyelids were fluttering. “He stayed up all night waiting to make Koutarou’s pancakes.”  
“Monster pancakes,” Ko mumbled.

“Should we just leave him?” Kenma asked uneasily. He was sitting on Ko’s other side and raised a hand as if to pat him, then withdrew it. Sometimes he acted as if Ko were a cat he was afraid of spooking.  
“Ko?” I reached over and shook his shoulder. He raised his head from one side, yawned, and then flipped it to the other before resting it back on the table.  
“Yeah, I think I’ll take him back.” Koutarou picked him up from the table and carried him down the hall. They seemed to be having a whispered conversation.

In the sudden absence, Kuroo commented, “That kid’s gonna run circles around us when he grows up.” I saw a few nods down the table.  
“I’ve always wondered how you managed to handle him,” Yukie added.  
“Him?”  
“Bokuto!”  
She raised her glass. “You and Akaashi are the only ones I’ve ever seen who’ve been able to influence him.”  
Hinata stopped inhaling food to gasp, “That’s right! I never asked how you two met either.”  
“Ah, that story’s not very interesting.” I looked at Akaashi for help, but he just smiled demurely.  
“I actually think it’s very interesting.”  
“So? Which is it?” Atsumu asked.

“Do you want to tell it or should I?” Akaashi shot me a questioning look.  
“You go ahead.”  
As he began, I closed my eyes, whether from embarrassment or to better see the memory, I didn’t know. Because, in fact, I remembered it very well…

I hadn’t been working at the office for very long when I first met Akaashi.  
“Yuu, is it?”  
I jumped. I’d been watching a volleyball match at my desk during a break, so I turned around sure I was about to be lectured. It was another editor I’d been introduced to when I first started, but I couldn’t remember his name for the life of me. Which might about to be very short. I couldn’t quite decipher the expression on his face, but it looked cold.  
“Yes!”  
I waited for the death blow, but instead he asked, “Are you a volleyball fan?”  
His eyes seemed to soften a little, though it might just have been my imagination.  
“Oh! Um…this is a bit embarrassing, but when I was in high school I was obsessed with a volleyball anime…I started watching real matches after that.” I realized the video was still playing in the background and paused it. A black jersey flashed on the screen.  
He nodded to it.  
“Which match are you watching?”  
“The MSBY Black Jackals versus Oita Miyoshi Weisse Adler…”  
His expression changed again. “I used to play with their spiker in high school.”  
“Which spiker?” I asked.  
“Bokuto.”  
“THIS BOKUTO?!?!” I gasped, jabbing the screen where the ace himself was frozen mid-leap.  
“Yes. I used to set for him.”  
“YOU USED TO SET FOR BOKUTO ON THE BLACK JACKALS?!?!”  
I heard a sharp “Shhh!” from one of the other cubicles. Who else was watching volleyball at their desk during a lunch break? I lowered my voice.  
I whispered, “You used to set for Bokuto on the Black Jackals?!?!”  
He nodded. “He was…quite moody.”  
“That’s amazing!” I studied the picture on the screen like it might reveal something to me. To think that someone at the office knew such a star athlete…  
“Do you still play?” I turned back to him.  
“No. I realized my true passion was copyediting.”

I thought he might be deadpanning, but just in case I said, “I see…”  
He pivoted. “How do you like it here?”  
“It’s great! I haven’t met many people yet though.”  
“Remind me to introduce you to Udai. He’s always working on an interesting project.”  
“Zombie Knight Zom’bish Udai?!”  
He nodded, then hesitated. With the sense that he was about to admit something embarrassing, he said, “To be completely honest, I originally wanted to be in the literature department.”  
“Oh…”  
“But I see you love manga.”  
“Well…if I’m being completely honest, I’ve always wanted to be involved with it.”  
“It’s good to do what you love.” Was he…smiling?  
He nodded back at the screen. “Um…Would you like to see their match on Saturday? The Black Jackals versus the Suntory Sunbirds?”  
“Really?!”  
He nodded. “I can get the tickets.”

We met outside the stadium. I’d only ever seen a friend’s volleyball matches in high school before, and the fact that thousands of people could be packed into the same place to watch a game awed me. Fans streamed in on either side in a black-and-white current.  
“It’s amazing.”  
I looked at Akaashi.  
“You don’t look impressed,” I joked. I’d been afraid it would be awkward meeting him outside of work for the first time, but we’d had lunch together a few times since our first meeting. At least now I could tell when he was joking. Mostly.  
He smiled. “It is amazing.”

As we filed into our seats, I asked, “Do you come to matches often?”  
“When I can. Bokuto always gets me a ticket when I need it.”  
“So you’re still close!”  
“Pretty close. He’s been…a very important part of my life. He was a major reason I went to Fukurodani.”  
I was about to ask him to elaborate when the match began, and my attention turned elsewhere.

The Black Jackals trotted out to their positions.  
There he was! As Bokuto turned over his shoulder (that piercing gaze! That hair!), I wondered if he knew Akaashi was in the stands. If it motivated him. I hoped it did.

The game began. The volleys were so fast I felt like I was barely breathing. I didn’t know how anyone had time to cheer. 

I gasped. “Hinata!”  
I meant to elaborate, but finally I just turned to Akaashi hoping my tone would express the thought for me. I’d seen it on TV, but then again I’d never realized exactly how high the net was…  
He laughed. “It’s always a shock to see his jump for the first time.”

The Black Jackals took the first set 25-23 and I saw Akaashi fist pump, which made me laugh.  
However, during the second set I kept finding my eyes drawn to Bokuto, who’d scored the last point with a line shot. I tried to rationalize it at first, saying it must have been the silver hair or the way he looked so excited to be there: to be on the court, to be playing. But really, I didn’t know what it was. Even when the Sunbirds led them by a few points he just seemed to take it as a personal challenge, his face splitting into a grin.  
I looked at Akaashi to see if he noticed, but he seemed to be analyzing the court, his mouth set in a slight frown. I wondered if his old habits as a setter were resurfacing, and again I wondered if he missed it. I turned back to the game.

The Black Jackals won after a nerve-wracking fourth set. At one point both sides made so many receives I imagined the ball would never touch the ground and we would be sitting watching in the stands forever. Which honestly didn’t sound that bad. But finally Hinata was able to land a spike and the Black Jackal fans erupted.  
As Akaashi and I were waiting in line for the stairs he asked, “So? What did you think?”  
“…” I tried to think of something intelligent and non-Bokuto-related to say, but finally I decided that he deserved to know the truth.  
“To be honest, I was mostly watching Bokuto.”  
I waited for him to tell me that I’d wasted his (or Bokuto’s?) hard-earned money, but to my surprise he just nodded knowingly.  
“When we played together, I spent a lot of time watching him, too. He was like a time bomb. The smallest thing could depress him or cheer him up again. Sometimes I felt like I was looking at him even more than the opposition.”  
He sighed. “He’s fun to watch when you’re not setting for him, though. He wears his heart on his sleeve. He’s a good guy.”  
Wow. That was probably the most I’d ever heard him talk in one go.  
He seemed to realize this at the same time and coughed.  
“Would you like to meet him?”  
Meet…him?  
About a million different neurons were firing in my brain at the same time, but none of the ones I needed.  
“Meet BOKUTO?!?!”  
I realized I was holding up the line and automatically started up the stairs.  
“Are you serious? He wouldn’t mind?”  
He shook his head.  
“Won’t he be celebrating?”  
He paused. “He actually asked to do something after the match tonight. A few of the team members are busy, so they’re not going out. Are you free?”  
“Akaashi, I spend my breaks alone watching volleyball. Of course I’m free! Are you serious?”  
He nodded.  
At the worst time, too! I’d run out of contacts earlier in the week, so I was wearing what my friends fondly termed my librarian glasses. I was also repping the Black Jackals in the form of a headband and robe. I’d felt a little silly when I saw Akaashi outside the stadium in his normal clothes, but the feeling had dissipated sitting amongst the other fans. Now, though?  
No! I couldn’t give up this opportunity just because I was wearing some merch! Unless he thought I was crazy…  
But then we reached the top of the stairs and I lost the chance to protest.

We’d been waiting for about thirty minutes when I finally decided to say something.  
“Akaashi, I don’t think-”  
“Hey hey hey!” An energetic voice rang out from behind us and I slowly turned around. This had to be a dream. Or a nightmare. Either way, it was going to be an adventure.  
“You’re the same as ever, Bokuto,” Akaashi sighed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has been such an adventure! I apologize if you get a bit of second-hand embarrassment from this chapter (I did too!).

“You used to tell me a pretty girl was watching from the stands. Now I see that it’s true!”  
I was staring right into the eyes of the Black Jackals’ outside hitter.  
“Bokuto…” Akaashi’s voice seemed to come from far away.  
“It’s nice to meet you…”  
I stared down at his outstretched hand. Too late, I realized I was supposed to respond.  
“Yuu.”  
“Hm?” He cocked his head to the side.  
“YUU!” I said, too loudly. I grabbed his hand and shook it up and down. Wow! With the sense that I was digging my own grave, I added, “YOU DID AN AMAZING JOB TODAY, BOKUTO!”  
He looked shocked, and I was afraid I’d gone too far. But then he said, “Hell…HELL YEAH I DID AN AMAZING JOB!”  
He turned to Akaashi excitedly. “You’re not doing anything right now, right, Akaashi?”  
“No, Bokuto.”  
He turned back to me. “And you too, Yuu?”  
I gulped. “Free as a bird.”

We ended up walking to a restaurant not far from the stadium.  
“How did I look out there?!”  
“Just as Yuu said, Bokuto. Amazing.”   
He turned to me suddenly.  
“So, Yuu, how did you like the game?”  
I hesitated. “It went so fast I felt like I was barely breathing. We were on the edge of our seats during the entire fourth set.”  
He laughed. “Sorry to worry you!”  
Akaashi held the door open and Bokuto motioned me inside.  
“Ladies first!”

“Sooo…what got you hooked on volleyball?”  
I jumped. Although we’d been sitting at the table for the last twenty minutes, I still couldn’t quite believe this was happening.  
I shot a glance at Akaashi to see if he’d already told him, then said, “Oh, you see…when I was in high school I was obsessed with a volleyball anime, and um…”  
“Ahhh! So? How do we stack up?” He looked genuinely curious.  
“You’re…even better in person.”  
I immediately wanted to become one with the floor.  
“Oh!~”  
Thankfully, Akaashi came to the rescue. “Anyway, Bokuto, how have you been?”  
He pouted. “You haven’t been coming to my matches recently.”  
“Yes…unfortunately I have to work.”  
“Yuu, you’re an editor too, right?” He brightened.  
I nodded. “Akaashi caught me illicitly watching volleyball at my desk.”  
I saw Akaashi shake his head in my peripheral vision.  
“Not illicit,” he said under his breath.  
“He has much more experience than I do, though,” I continued.  
“Hm…so two intellectuals!”  
“I wouldn’t exactly call us intellectuals, Bokuto.”  
“Too late!”  
As I watched Bokuto grin at a scowling Akaashi, I wondered if they’d always been like this.  
It looked nice.

“When we were in high school, Bokuto was about as moody as you could be.” The conversation had wandered a bit, and Akaashi tossed back his drink with a sense of finality.  
“Akaashi!!!” Bokuto looked so wounded I almost forgot he was…well, Bokuto.  
He looked down. “It’s true that in high school I let my emotions determine how I played.”  
“…”  
Akaashi seemed to sense this change in tone as well as he set down his glass. Did he sound almost…wistful?  
“Even though I was the captain, I was still the baby of the team. I threw tantrums, and everyone else had to clean up after me. But...”  
He looked up. He had the same look in his eyes as he had while making that final line shot. Determination? Pride? “I’m not like that anymore! Now I’m just a regular player his teammates can depend on.”  
Or victory?  
“…”  
We stared at him.  
“Bokuto…” For once, Akaashi sounded at a loss for words.  
“So, Yuu, what do you do in your free time?” Aaand he was back.  
“Me? I watch a lot of TV - mostly anime or volleyball. So in that way I guess I’m still the same as in high school. I guess your interests really do determine your job, right?” I talked to fill up the empty space.  
But we both knew something had changed.

We’d just managed to gloss over that incident when Bokuto gave us something else to think about.  
“So, Yuu, Akaashi…are you two together?”  
I spat out my drink. I looked over at Akaashi expecting him to be offended, or at the very least gathering up his last remaining shreds of patience, but he was surprisingly calm.  
“It’s not like that, Bokuto. We’re good friends who met through work.”  
Good friends? After a few lunch breaks??  
I was so touched that I almost forgot about the matter at hand.  
“I see…Yuu, why did you become an editor? I’ve already asked Akaashi.” One look told me he’d found that answer unsatisfactory. Akaashi rolled his eyes.  
“To help people share the love they’ve poured into their creations…To help them achieve their dreams.”  
It slipped out before I could think it over properly. A beat too late, I added, “I guess.”  
Once again I was trapped in those eyes.  
“What about your dreams?”  
Always asking the hard questions, huh?  
“I met you," I said.

I was truly BEYOND HELP!!! Would it be rude if I stood up and left?! I was unexplainable. I didn’t even want to explain this to myself.  
“I mean, I’ve always wanted to meet you! After watching so many of your matches!” I stumbled. “I’ve dreamt about meeting you!”  
I stood up. The chair scraped loudly against the floor and I saw a few patrons pause out of the corner of my eye. “I need to go to the bathroom.”

I spent the rest of the night only speaking when spoken to. I’d already made too many Freudian slips, and honestly, why was I even trying to hide it anymore? I looked over at him guiltily. He’d been my unrealistic volleyball crush for ages. It was a mistake thinking that I could act normally around him. He looked over and we made eye contact. He smiled. I turned away.

Akaashi covered the bill. I didn’t protest as much as I would like to imagine I would have normally, but I wanted the night to end as quickly as possible so I could go back home, take off the Black Jackals logo, and never look at it again. I couldn’t wait until this was just a distant memory.

We were finally leaving the restaurant, Bokuto a few steps ahead, when he said, “Well, I had a great time tonight!”  
Really?  
I looked at Akaashi. His face was inscrutable.  
Bokuto turned back. “Come see some of my other matches. I’ll get you free tickets. And Yuu…”  
He winked.  
“Call me.”

I thought absolutely nothing at all for the next fifteen seconds it took for him to walk away whistling.  
By the time I came to my senses again he was just a dark silhouette against the buildings slowly shutting their lights off one by one.  
I turned to Akaashi. You heard that too, right? It wasn’t just a fantasy?  
He handed me a napkin with numbers on it. A lot of numbers.  
A phone number.  
“He said to give this to you when you were in the bathroom.” He shrugged apologetically. “He didn’t want to embarrass you.”  
I took it mechanically.  
“I don’t…I was…I didn’t think I was particularly interesting.” I looked down at the paper in my hand.  
I pushed it back at him. “I don’t deserve this. I’m just a crazy fan. Look, I didn’t even take off my robe.” I tugged at it.  
Akaashi reached out and I thought he was going to take it, to say that I was right, I wasn’t good enough for him. But instead he closed my fist around it.  
“Yuu, I haven’t known you for very long, but you’re passionate about what you love. You’re kind. And most importantly…you care about Bokuto.”  
I stared at him. We stood locked in place.  
He continued on. “He’s changed since high school, but in some ways he’s still the same. He’s a star. He needs someone to bring him back to earth.”  
“You’re that someone,” I said. For maybe the first time that night, I looked him in the eye.  
He smiled at that. “We have our own lives now. Mine doesn’t revolve around volleyball anymore.”  
“I-”  
“I’m sorry, I don’t mean to put so much responsibility on you.” He dropped his hand. “But if you feel the same way, you deserve to know.”  
The napkin felt solid in my hand.  
“Thank you, Akaashi.”

“Hm…that’s not how I remember it.”  
Everyone at the table jumped. I turned to see Koutarou leaning against the wall to the bedrooms, his arms folded over his chest.  
How long had he been standing there? But more importantly, why didn’t he just sit back down again?  
“How do you remember it then, Bokuto?” Akaashi asked dryly. He’d presented an extremely condensed version that made me sound more confident during the whole interaction, which I appreciated but which at the same time felt fundamentally wrong.  
He started walking over.  
“Nope! You got it all wrong.” He leaned down until we were eye-to-eye. “I was the nervous wreck.”

“Get a room!” I heard from multiple points down the table.  
I kissed him again.  
“Oh, shut up.”

After that, almost everyone stayed inside reminiscing about the good old days. Which, I found out, took many different forms.  
Tsukishima was snickering at Hinata over something that had happened in high school.  
The Black Jackals were comparing notes from that momentous Suntory Sunbirds game.  
The Fukurodani managers were discussing their work lives.  
Kuroo, Kenma, and Bokuto were talking about Ko. I lingered a little longer to hear what they had to say about that topic.  
“I think you have to start him on volleyball early,” Kuroo was saying.  
Kenma shook his head. “Don’t force him if he doesn’t want to.”  
“I forced you, and look how well that turned out!”  
Kenma sighed.  
“I’ve already started practicing the basic skills with him. He seems to like it.” Koutarou actually sounded worried. I reminded myself to have a talk with him later.  
“Good. Drill it into him.”  
“Let me know if he ever gets into games.”  
“Ohoho, so Kenma’s actually volunteering to babysit?”  
“I didn’t say that.”  
I left them to their banter.  
The only person unaccounted for was Akaashi.

He looked up when I slid the screen door shut behind me. He’d been leaning against the railing staring at the sky.  
“Thanks for making me look cool,” I said, settling beside him.  
He smirked. “You were cool. You stole his heart in one pass.”  
I laughed.  
We stood there in amicable silence. I looked out at the stars.  
“You know, Akaashi…I don’t think I ever thanked you. For everything.”  
He shrugged. “There’s nothing to thank me for. I just did what a good friend would do. For both of you.”  
I shook my head. “You’ve done so much more.”  
He turned uneasily.  
I looked at him until he looked back, then said, “You’ve got it all wrong. You’re the lucky star. You brought us all together.”  
I couldn’t decipher the look on his face. You’d think that after all these years I’d be able to.  
But then he brought me into a hug and I didn’t have to read expressions. I could feel the wet spots on my shoulder.  
I bet he could feel mine, too.

We stood locked in place until Kaori slid the door open and called, “Bokuto’s making a toast!”  
We broke apart and I wiped my face. My voice came out wobblier than I expected. “Oh, crap! The cake’s still in the fridge.”  
“You made a cake?” Akaashi sounded genuinely surprised.  
We looked at each other and laughed.

After the presents were unwrapped and the guests had gone home (Kuroo had gotten Koutarou a kiddie volleyball net for Ko, who knew?), it was just me and Koutarou cleaning up the house.  
I knotted the last trash bag with a triumphant twist.  
“Ha!”  
I dropped it with the others. “Koutarou, would you mind helping me bring these out?”  
“Mhm.” I turned around. Always a surprise!  
I put my arms around his neck. “So? What did you think?”  
“Hm…I think…best-party-ever.” He gave me a kiss on the cheek for every word.  
I laughed. “I guess it’s going to be hard to top this one.”  
“Yuu.” His tone suddenly sounded more serious.  
“Mhm?”  
“Thank you for doing all of this.”  
“Of course, Koutarou.”  
“And I think I know what I want.”  
“Oh? Do tell.”  
“A beach vacation! So Ko can learn beach volleyball.”  
“Wow, beach volleyball! But I overheard your conversation with Kuroo today - don’t make him if he doesn’t want to!”  
“All right,” he begrudged. But I thought I heard him mutter under his breath, “He wants to.”  
“What was that?”  
“Hm?”  
“I couldn’t quite hear that.”  
“Hm? Nothing. Nothing, I swear.”  
“Are you sure?”  
“I’m positive.”  
The next kiss was a bit deeper, and I had to pull away by reminding myself that we were standing in the middle of the kitchen surrounded by trash bags. Ah, romance!  
“Can you take these out first?” I asked.  
“And then we can continue this…later?” He sounded almost anxious as he took a bag in each hand.  
I gave him one last kiss. For now.  
“Later,” I said.  
He whistled on his way out.

I turned off the lights down the hallway and peeked in to see Ko smiling in his sleep.  
The stars were burning brightly tonight.  
I smiled and closed the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, I can’t believe we’ve reached the end of this fanfiction! This would make it my one and only completed work (WOOHOO!). It was so much fun to write, and I hope that you enjoyed it despite my lack of expertise on cooking, romance, and volleyball (in that order)!
> 
> Once again, thank you so much for going on this journey with me! Stay safe and stay reading!
> 
> 104


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhh!!! I know I said so much about the series being over with two chapters, but I may continue to add single scenes as I think of them. I will admit, this is...more than a little cringey LOL. *Roman Holiday movie spoiler below!*

“Do you want to watch something?” I suggested brightly.  
“Sure!”  
I plopped down on the couch and patted the space next to me. Bokuto settled down.  
We’d been seeing each other for about a month now, but it was the first time he’d been to the apartment. I’d tidied up a little and even gotten my roommate Ami to help, though not without a little grumbling.

“All I’m saying is, if he doesn’t like a little clutter on the island, maybe he’s not the one,” she'd joked, tapping a stack of papers into a neat pile.  
“Bokuto’s not like that,” I said anxiously. “I just want to make a good impression. You know how it is.”  
“I get it.” As she carried them back to her room, she called, “What are you going to do?”  
“I was thinking we could just watch a movie.”  
“Bo-ring!” She stuck her tongue out as she came back.  
“It’s too late now! I can’t think of anything else.” I put my face in my hands. “I can’t cook him anything either. I don’t want to scare him off this soon.”  
“I’m not saying you have to make him a three-course meal. But why don’t you show him your room?” She smirked. “So he can understand what kind of person you really are.”  
“What’s that supposed to mean!”  
“Yuu, I don't know how to break it to you, but...you have a LOT of manga. Like, way more than a normal person has. And all of those volleyball-”  
“What part of ‘not scaring him off’ do you not understand?” I groaned.  
She laughed. “Ok, fine, fine! I’ll stay out of your way today.”  
“Oh no! I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to kick you out.”  
“It’s fine! I want to. I have some new spots I want to try, anyway.”  
“And then we’ll hang out tomorrow?” I asked anxiously.  
“And then we’ll hang out tomorrow."  
She adjusted a centerpiece. “But I want you to have a good night first.”

As I navigated to the Netlix homepage, I realized this was also a prime opportunity to get to know him better. Nothing quite revealed a person’s personality like movie preferences.  
As I was logging in, I asked, “What are you in the mood for?”  
“Hm…” He hesitated and I looked over. Drama? Comedy? Romance?  
“What about a romantic comedy?”  
BOTH?!?! I scrolled down to the genre. “Any one in particular?”  
“Why don’t we pick one randomly!”  
“Randomly?”  
He reached over and covered my eyes. “Don’t peek!”  
I put on a show of scrolling up and down, then side to side before I clicked the remote again. I heard him give a sharp intake of breath and I gently removed his hands, a little worried.  
“Good? Bad?” Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn beamed back at us from the screen.  
I turned to Bokuto in surprise. “You like Roman Holiday?”  
“Never seen it. I’m willing to give it a try, though,” he said with an easy smile. Everything was easy with him.  
I hit Play.

I wasn’t exactly sure how close to him I should get, so I kept my distance until he suddenly rest his head on my shoulder.  
I nearly jumped.  
“Um, one sec.”  
I reached across the sofa for the blanket and tugged it over us.  
He lingered uncertainly, and after hesitating a moment I gently pushed his head back into position.  
I wondered if he could hear my heartbeat pounding in my chest.

We’d spent most of the movie uneventfully, but as the credits were rolling I started to hear a strange noise.  
Schuff. Schuff. Schuff.  
Sniffing? I slowly looked down.  
“Bokuto!” I exclaimed. Tears were streaming down his face.  
“You don’t have to hold it in!” I reached out and he buried his face in my collarbone. I could feel my shirt getting slightly damper.  
“It’s so sad! Why did they have to p-p-part?” he said, a little muffled.  
“She had to uphold her duties!” I said. After hesitating a moment, I put my arms around his (admittedly broad) shoulders. Man, if you’d told me that I would be comforting Bokuto over Roman Holiday a month ago…  
He peeled his face away a moment and looked up at me. His eyes were red.  
“But they loved each other!”  
I don’t know what I would have said to that, but thankfully at that exact moment the door opened and I put vague declarations about love on the back-burner.  
“Ami!”  
The door slammed. She waved cheerily and took a step towards us, then stopped when she saw Bokuto.  
“Hi! You won’t believe where I - Oh, I’m sorry…Am I interrupting something?”  
“No! We just finished watching Roman Holiday…” Bokuto wiped his face.  
I hastily got up.  
“Ami, this is Bokuto! Bokuto, this is my roommate Ami.”  
He stood up too and they shook hands.  
“Yuu watches your matches, like, every night,” Ami said.  
“AMI!”

“Ami, you’re a fashion designer?” Bokuto asked, impressed.  
We were all sitting at the counter now, the tears thankfully dry. I took a sip out of my mug in relief.  
She nodded. “Yup. Met Yuu through college. I work super close to her office, too, but she’s been having lunch with someone else lately."  
“Akaashi,” I muttered.  
“But this is boring." She gave Boktuo a wicked grin. "Don’t you want to know what she was like?”  
“Like?” Uh-oh.  
“She was super into anime then, too. She used to stay up when new episodes dropped. And she got herself locked out of the dorms all the time. Once-”  
“Enough!” I interrupted. “He doesn’t want to hear that.”  
“I do!” he protested. “Please, Ami, go on.”  
I listened miserably as Ami smiled and began anew.

After chatting a bit more, Ami plopped down on the couch to watch a detective drama. I tried to glare at her while Bokuto wasn’t looking, but she just winked. Not budging. It seemed too abrupt to boot him out, so I asked awkwardly, “Want to go to my room?”  
God…I hope that didn’t sound as bad as it felt.  
His eyes went a little wide, but he nodded and followed me down the hall.

“Wow! You have so much manga.” He made a beeline for the shelves. I thanked god that I’d had the foresight to make my bed today.  
“Yeah…” I walked over and found the volleyball manga.  
“Here it is! You can thank Volleyball Fever for us meeting…” I rifled through the pages until I found him.  
“Aha! Here’s your lookalike.” I pointed triumphantly at a player introduction page.  
He leaned in. His face was really very close.  
I handed him the book and retreated a little.  
“Oh!” He read a few pages and in the interval I sat down awkwardly on the bed.  
“Does he remind you of me?” he asked.  
“A little. He’s the lovable goofball type.”  
“And I’m…a lovable goofball?”  
Oh, geez.  
“You’re very, um…”  
He sat down on the other side of the bed and tapped the cover.  
“I think you have a type.”  
“A type?” I asked, genuinely surprised.  
“Yep! Stunningly attractive volleyball players.”  
How did he say these things with a straight face?  
“Stunningly attractive!” I marveled. “Well…personality-wise, you’re way cooler than him.”  
After a pause, I looked back. He was smiling as if inviting me to go on.  
“Well…for one, you’re not afraid to cry at Roman Holiday.”  
To my horror, he started to tear up again.  
“Don’t cry, don’t cry!” I yelped and cupped his face to brush the tears off.  
“I just don’t understand why she had to go back,” he sniffled. One wipe. “They loved each other so much.” Another wipe.  
I was holding his face now. I was looking right into his eyes.  
Wow.  
“In…in response to your earlier question,” I stammered. “Sometimes you can’t be with who you love…no matter how much you love them. Life gets in the way.”  
I coughed. “Sorry, that sounded terrible.”  
He shook his head. My hands moved with him.  
“It’s not terrible.”  
“Really?”  
He nodded slightly. “I get it. It’s just…They’ll always think about what could have been.”  
“Maybe. But maybe the happy memories will outweigh the sad ones."  
He sniffled and I withdrew my hands.  
“I don’t want you to have any regrets, Bokuto.” In the aftermath it seemed like a bold thing to say to someone I’d just met. I could feel my face getting redder and redder.  
“Do you have any regrets, Yuu?”  
I dodged a bit. “I regret that I can’t make you feel better.”  
He shook his head vigorously. “You’re making me feel better right now!”  
A tear track still glistened on his cheek. I reached out to wipe it away.  
With an unexpected boldness that surprised even me, I leaned in. “I’m going to regret this.”  
The kiss tasted salty.

“Well, did you?” he asked anxiously as I pulled back.  
I pondered for a moment, then leaned in again. “Nope.”

A little while later, we just lay on the bed reading manga. He was so engrossed in the volleyball story that even I started rereading it. I read a volume ahead of him so that we could trade. How had I never noticed this, and this, and that before? Was it Boktuo? Or was I just feeling more generously towards volleyball?  
I’d lost count of the volumes we’d read when I finally looked at the clock.  
“BOKUTO!” I shook him. “It’s 2 a.m.!”  
“It is?”  
I showed him the alarm clock and he slowly set down his book.  
“The last time I stayed up this late was - never mind! Is it safe for you to go back?”  
He nodded.  
“Wait, I can’t let you go home,” I fretted. “Do you want to stay here?”  
His eyes went very wide, and I was about to backtrack when he said, “Can I?”  
“Of course! I can make up the sofa or - you could stay in here.” That sentence got quieter with every word.  
We stared at each other for a moment.  
“I don’t want you to think that I don’t want you with - I mean-” Just shut up, my brain urged me.  
“I can stay here. Unless it’s an inconvenience! It’s just, the bed is very comfy and…” He patted it. I stared.  
Was he…embarrassed?! It wasn’t very often that I saw him at a loss for words.  
“Yeah, of course! Let me see if I can find an extra toothbrush…” I walked dazedly out of the room, both elated and terrified.

When the awkward time came for us to actually get in bed after washing up, I hesitated a bit.  
“I’ve been known to, um…kick people in my sleep.” It ashamed me to say it, but that had been a pretty frequent complaint in sleepovers past. “So I’m really sorry if-”  
“Don’t worry about it!” he said breezily. “I sleep like a rock, so I probably wouldn’t notice even if you did.”  
“Oh!”  
We were both still standing at opposite sides of the bed.  
Face burning, I peeled back the covers and lay down.  
He climbed in and I almost stopped breathing. I hadn’t shared a bed with someone in years. Maybe I should have been more insistent about the kicking thing.  
I was so busy fretting that I almost missed it when he said, “Good night, Yuu. Sweet dreams.”  
I reached out and turned off the light, then placed my glasses on the nightstand.  
“Good night, Bokuto.”

Bzzzt. Bzzzt. Buzzzt.  
My alarm? But it didn’t sound like usual…  
Whatever. An alarm was an alarm was an alarm. I peeled my eyes open.  
I was lying on my side against something solid. Something solid?  
It shifted behind me and I jumped. The solid…  
Bokuto!  
He leaned down and silenced his phone, which must have been lying on the floor.  
I turned around slowly.  
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you,” he whispered.  
“It’s fine,” I whispered back. “Do you need to go?”  
It was still pretty dark, but I was sure that he nodded. I reached around and turned on the lamp. The light stabbed me in the eye and I felt around for my glasses.  
“How did you sleep?” I asked anxiously.  
He smiled. “I was out like a light.”  
I looked at the clock. 5 A.M.?!?!  
“Bokuto, your alarm isn’t set for five, is it?” I gasped. Either this had been a really bad night and he’d been trying to escape early, or…  
He grimaced. “I forgot to turn it off. I have early practice.”  
“Are you going to make it?”  
He nodded. “If I hurry.”  
“All right then.” I threw off the covers. “Let me make you some toast first.”

“Do you like butter?” I asked. I was already buttering it, so I daydreamed an enthusiastic, Yes, Yuu! Butter is my favorite food!  
“Or is it too unhealthy?” I stopped.  
“I like it.” I happily went back to buttering.  
“If you set the alarm to escape, please tell me. I can handle it,” I said anxiously as I slid the plate across the counter.  
He caught it and took a bite.  
“Nope! I actually wish I could’ve stayed longer…I forgot to tell you last night.” It was his turn to sound anxious.  
I waved him off. “I basically held you hostage, so don’t worry.”  
I watched him eat for a bit.  
“Are you sure you got enough sleep? I mean, two and five is only three hours…” I eyed the clock. It was a little past 5:20 now, and the sun was yet to rise.  
“Best sleep of my life.” He was already done! That could’ve been a toast-eating world record.  
I took his plate from him and put it in the sink.  
“And you’ll get to the gym all right?” I asked as I walked him to the door.  
He smiled. “Really, Yuu. I’ll be fine.”  
I must’ve looked worried because he laughed as he leaned down to kiss me.  
“Text me when you get home,” I called down the hallway.  
He winked as he rounded the corner.

I sighed as I locked the door.  
“Ahem!”  
I jumped.  
Ami posed on the couch. Had she…been there the entire time?  
“Sooo…how did it go?”   
“Why are you up?!” I gasped.  
She yawned. “I fell asleep on the couch.”  
“Did you find out who did it?” I sat down next to her and grabbed a pillow.  
“Yeah. The daughter. Who’d’ve thunk?”  
She laid her head on the armrest. “To be honest, when I walked in last night I thought you were breaking up with him.”  
“Already? Who do you take me for!”  
She smirked in response.  
“Wow. I just…wow. It’s not like I bring home that many guys, either,” I sighed.  
“True…I mean, your true love has always been the owl-haired guy…Bokuto or bust!” She made a kissy face.  
I tossed the pillow at her and she caught it laughing.  
“But seriously…how much do you like this guy?”  
“A lot,” I admitted.  
She rolled her eyes.  
“I’m telling the truth! Fine. A lot a lot.”  
“So much so that I’m going to have to find a new roommate?” She made puppy dog eyes at me.  
“You’re going way too fast!”  
“We used to be Ami and Yuu, down to two. Now it’s just Ami.”  
“You’ll be just fine!” When I poked her cheek, she blew out a raspberry.  
“And you’re wrong. It’ll always be Ami and Yuu…just us two.”  
She smiled at that.  
However, any sympathy I might’ve had for her evaporated when she asked, “So, how was it?”  
“How was what?” I asked, before - “You’re so crude! It was just cuddling.”  
“Sure.”  
“We were both beat. He’d cried himself out from Roman Holiday." I looked away but I could feel my face heating up.  
“I love a man who can express his emotions!”  
I poked her again and she laughed.


	4. Chapter 4

“I appreciate that he gave me his number, but I feel nervous now!” I looked from my phone in one hand to the napkin in the other.  
Ami looked up from her drafts. “You’re always nervous.”  
“I’m hurt.” I triple-checked the number before typing, “Hey, it’s Yuu!!” very, very slowly.  
“You’re not defusing a bomb here!”  
I hovered over the Send button, then pressed it with sudden abandon. “There it goes!”  
I tossed the phone onto the couch cushions.  
Ami clapped sarcastically from the island, and I smiled.  
“Thank you, thank you very much.”

“Are you seriously not gonna check it?”  
I’d been reading for the last half hour, my phone facedown on the table next to me. I shook my head.  
“I’ll check it for you,” she huffed. “The suspense is killing me.”  
“Well, that makes one of us. I could happily leave it for the next year.”  
“Yuu! He gave you his number. He obviously wants to talk to you!”  
“Maybe he changed his mind!”  
She shook her head. “People do the weirdest things when they’re in love.”  
“In love!”  
“JUST CHECK IT!”  
I held my breath as I turned it over.  
“Hey!!! :))”  
“Look!” I handed it to her.  
“See?” she started to say, but then it buzzed. “Oh! He’s asking what you’re up to.”  
I typed back, “Not much!! Wbu?”  
He typed for a while, and then the thinking bubble disappeared. Um…  
Ding!  
I hastened to open the picture.  
Bokuto was smiling at the camera, and in the background Hinata (Hinata!!!) held up a peace sign. They looked to be in a gym.  
“Oh my gosh! That’s amazing!” I gasped.  
“What? Did he send you a selfie?” Ami asked.  
“Even better! A Black Jackals practice photo!!!” I saved it. “Do you mind if I frame this?”  
As Ami protested, I thought, Maybe this won’t be so hard.

We continued texting over the next few days. There were long stretches of time when he was in practice or I was working, but he seemed pretty active. He sent photos of practice, of the scenery outside his train, of the places he’d run to.  
More than once Ami had to take my phone away during meals.  
“ENOUGH! I was worried about you never texting him, but now I’m worried that you’ll never STOP texting him!” In one fluid movement, she placed the phone out of reach and almost simultaneously grabbed a takeout box from the table.  
“Anyway, I wanted to tell you about a special opportunity I got today…to study with a designer in France!”  
“In France?” I said, the food I’d brought halfway to my mouth completely forgotten. France seemed as foreign as the moon to me at that moment.  
She nodded. “I’m not going to take it, though. I’m just flattered to have even been considered.”  
A red flush creeped into her cheeks as she poked at her food. “I have a lot more to learn here before I can even think about going abroad.”  
“Don’t sell yourself short! Are you serious? That’s an amazing opportunity!” How could she consider NOT going, if it was what she really wanted to do?!?!  
She nodded. “I can’t leave now. Maybe in the future, but…I have to get better first.”  
I hesitated. “Ami, are you sure? I don’t-”  
She coughed. “Anyway, how’s work for you?”  
I reluctantly changed tracks. “It’s been pretty good! Sakai is pretty open to revisions. Sometimes I wish he’d tell me when he really wanted to keep something.”  
She nodded wisely. “Ah, so he’s a pushover.”  
“You’re so mean!” I laughed, but then I stopped to think it over. “Well…I guess he is a bit of a pushover. I’d talk to him about it, but he’d probably just say yes!”  
At that moment, my phone dinged and I looked questioningly at Ami. She rolled her eyes and slid it to me. “Whatever. You get one text.”  
I was about to agree when I read it and I froze.  
“Are you free this weekend? I was thinking we could get a coffee sometime. :)”  
“That’s not good. You look completely shocked,” Ami sighed.  
As I started typing back, I marveled, “I might have plans this weekend.”

We met at a coffee shop about twenty minutes away from the apartment. Bokuto was standing outside when I arrived.  
“Hi! Sorry to make you wait.”  
He smiled. “Don’t apologize! I just got here.”  
He looked into my eyes for so long that I squirmed. “Um, is something wrong?”  
“You’re not wearing your glasses today?”  
Ah, so he HAD noticed! I’d made sure to stockpile on contacts after the last incident.  
“Yes…normally I wear contacts.”  
“Oh!” He smiled sheepishly. “I really liked them.”  
“You did?” Years of people telling me to get contacts seemed to be rushing towards me all at once. Librarian glasses…I’d have to tell Ami!  
He held the door open. “Shall we?”

We sat back outside once we’d gotten our drinks. He had paid for mine, and I felt slightly guilty. He’d covered my ticket, Akaashi had covered our dinner…  
“Don’t worry about it!” he said cheerfully.  
I looked up, startled. “How did you know?”  
“You and Akaashi have very similar worrying faces.”  
“We do?” Akaashi and I had been having lunch together, but I hadn’t noticed this particular quirk. Maybe he was rubbing off on me.  
“Yep! So don’t worry anymore.”  
“All right…” Looking at his smile prompted another question. “Bokuto, do you ever worry during matches?”  
“Not really! The most important thing is to keep moving forwards, and to correct your mistakes. But I’ve definitely let some things get me down before, for sure.”  
“I see.” I liked the way he thought about things: always facing forward, always looking ahead. It seemed like a very different mindset than my own, but it sounded nice.  
I changed the topic. “Thank you for meeting with me today.”  
“I should be telling YOU that!” he laughed. “I was so nervous when I left that note.”  
I protested, but it had never occurred to me that Bokuto…BOKUTO could have been anxious too.  
“Wait,” I teased. “That sounds an awful lot like worrying!”  
He put his hands up. “All right. Guilty as charged.”

We talked a bit more about our families then.  
“You have two older sisters?!?!” I gasped.  
He nodded. “Truly the baby of the family. They tried to teach me to be tough, but I think they ended up spoiling me rotten!”  
I tried to imagine two older, female Bokuto’s. “That’s crazy! It explains a lot, though.”  
“Like what?” He looked genuinely interested.  
“Well, why you’re so respectful. And charming.” I bit my tongue so hard it stung.  
He raised his eyebrows. “Charming?”  
“Yes. I feel like I’ve known you forever but also that there will always be new things to discover about you.” Did I even know what I was saying anymore?  
“Oh!” He looked pleased. “A man of mystery!”  
“Hang on a second!” I laughed. “I feel like you’d tell all of your mysteries in a heartbeat.”  
“I guess so,” he admitted. “As long as it was you who was asking.”

After we’d finished our drinks, he wanted to take a walk to a bridge nearby. “Sometimes I cross it on my runs,” he said excitedly. He sped up in anticipation.  
Pedestrians and bikes whizzed across it, and a slow-moving river ran underneath it to disappear beneath a canopy of trees downstream. I looked down at the gray water flowing below.  
“It’s really nice here.” I felt like we were at the heart of the action: people streamed by on either side as the river rushed below. It seemed like the perfect place for Bokuto, both busy and peaceful.  
He nodded. “I like coming here in the afternoon. It’s pretty lonely in the morning.”  
He looked out across the water. “Yuu, when I asked you about your dreams a while ago…what do you really think?”  
I blushed remembering my original response.  
“Um…” I leaned against the railing. “I want to be important, I guess. I mean, I want to do something important, whether that’s editing manga or being part of something greater.”  
When I finally dared to look back at him, he was staring at me steadily.  
“I’m really glad that I met you. I feel like I’m getting closer to the second one this way.”  
The surprised look on his face was so endearing that I laughed. “I’m sorry if that sounds really sudden.”  
“No, not at all!” He smiled, and at the same moment the sun came out from behind a cloud. No way…  
Light bathed his face as he said, “I feel the same way.”

When it came time for us to part, I didn’t know what to do. Shake hands? Hug? Just wave?  
I was still fretting over it when he said, “May I?”  
I nodded distractedly and startled when he leaned in to kiss me on the cheek.  
I immediately felt my face heat up. It was just the never-ending saga of me embarrassing myself, huh?  
“Thank you for coming today! Next time I’ll ask you to do something more exciting.”  
“No! I like seeing places that are important to you. I feel closer to you now.” I resisted the urge to touch my face and promised myself that I could as soon as he turned around.  
“Oh! I’m glad.” But seeing the way his face was flushing, maybe it was mutual.

…

“How are things going with Bokuto?”  
I stopped filing. The question, asked so mildly, threw me off guard. What level of detail was appropriate to his best friend? I kept my face turned away as I continued sorting.  
“Good! I…I like him a lot. We got coffee together last weekend.”  
I turned back to Akaashi, already knowing I was blushing. “Was this the last of the paperwork?”  
He nodded and I stood up.  
“I’m glad that things are going well for you. Even if you had what you considered a rocky start.”  
I sighed. “Ah, I still get secondhand embarrassment from it sometimes.”  
He shook his head. “It wasn’t bad! He’s not the type to nice when other people are uncomfortable either.”  
“He’s really, really kind. I’ve never met anyone like him.”  
“Like a star?”  
I thought back to the cloud incident. If the universe was giving me a sign…  
“Yes…like the sun.”  
I led the way out of the filing room and he turned off the lights behind us.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just Yuu and Bokuto’s (extremely short) first date!! I had some fun thinking about how she would get up the courage to text him first. Next time, Bokuto and Yuu get caught in the rain?


	5. Chapter 5

“It’s pouring!” I gasped.  
The rain was coming down in sheets outside of the movie theater. I’d known it would be cloudy, but…! I cursed myself for not checking the weather forecast before we left.  
“You don’t have an umbrella, do you?” I asked Bokuto. He shook his head.  
“Oh, geez…” I looked back out the window. People with more foresight than us hurried by on either side shaking out their own and donning rain jackets.  
“I guess we’ll just have to make a run for it,” Bokuto said. Too cheerfully for the situation, in my opinion. He unzipped his jacket.  
“I don’t think undressing will-” I began, but then he draped the sides over me to make a Yuu-and-Bokuto-sized jacket monster.  
“Oh!” I was about to ask when to start running when he said, “Now!” and pushed open the door.  
We slipped and slid over the wet sidewalk. More than once, I felt myself start to teeter forward, but every time he put out a comforting hand to stabilize me.  
I could hear his laugh over the rain all the way to the station.

“I’ve never seen your hair so wet before!” I marveled. We’d finally arrived at the apartment, and I reached out a hand on either side of his face to touch it. He leaned down obligingly.  
“How much hair gel do you use?”  
He pouted, hurt. “I’ve stayed over so many times I thought you knew! It sticks up naturally.”  
I looked at him disbelievingly. He definitely didn’t have Kuroo-level bedhead…  
“Okay, fine. Maybe just a little.”  
I nodded. “Here, let me take that.” He shrugged out of his coat and I carried it to the laundry room.  
When I returned to my room, he was still standing, evidently afraid to sit on the bed.  
“On second thought, take it all off. I’ll put them in the dryer.”  
As he pulled his shirt over his head, I realized I was staring. “I mean, keep your um…” I turned away. “I’ll go get you a blanket.”  
I hunted around for a quilt (thank god Ami had kept one!) and made sure to maintain strict eye contact when I reentered the room. I traded him for the clothes and he draped the quilt around his shoulders.  
After chucking them in the dryer, I changed quickly in the bathroom before returning.  
He was perched on my bed a bit like a huge bird in a nest.  
I sat down next to him and nudged his shoulder. “Sorry we got caught in the rain.”  
“You look cold.” With a sweeping motion reminiscent of his draping his coat over me in the first place, he took me under the wing of the quilt. I settled closer to him.  
“You’re super warm!” I gasped.  
He nodded proudly. “Don’t be afraid. Your personal heater is here!”  
I grinned. “Even when I do…this?” I placed my cold hands against the small of his back and he jumped.  
“It’ll take a lot more than that!”  
He wrapped his arms around me and laughed as I tried to tackle him.

“Okay, you win.” He’d transferred enough of his body heat that we were at a pleasant equilibrium again.  
I laid my head on the pillow and he lay on his side.  
He’d spent the night a few times, but this felt a bit different.  
Or maybe he was just wearing fewer clothes! I felt my face heat up as I asked the ceiling, “Aren’t you ever embarrassed?”  
“Not when I’m with you.”  
I turned to see a soft smile on his face.  
“Bokuto…where do you see our relationship going?” I asked quietly. “I mean, how far do you want this to lead?”  
He lifted his head and said seriously, “As far as you want to go. I want to do everything with you.”  
I turned onto my side too. “Everything?”  
“Everything that you want to do.” He hesitated. “I want to stay with you all the time. I’m sorry if that sounds selfish.”  
Something twinged inside me. “Do you mean eventually…moving in together?”  
He nodded.  
I felt my eyes start to prickle.  
“Yuu, are you ok?” He reached over anxiously. “I’m sorry, was that going too fast?”  
I wiped my face. “Yeah. I’m sorry. It’s just really hard for me to think about…leaving Ami. Um…” I moved closer and felt his arms circle around me.  
“Sorry, I got you all wet again!”  
I laughed but he continued to look earnestly into my face.  
“Yes, I want to stay with you,” I said. “It just might take me some time. Will you wait for me?” It was my turn to search his face.  
“I’ll always wait for you.”  
We lay together a bit longer. When it was time for him to leave, his clothes were still warm.

“Oh, geez,” Ami said when I peeked my head into her room. “You and Bokuto just love having cry-fests, huh?”  
“Shut up!” I laughed, but it came out more like a sniffle.  
“Oh no! Come here.” She held her arms out and I sank into them gratefully. I was just getting comforted by everyone, huh?  
She rubbed my back for a moment, then stopped. “Wait, you didn’t actually break up with him this time, did you?”  
“No! Quite the opposite, actually.” I rest my head on her shoulder. “We talked about…moving in together.”  
I braced myself, but she just sighed. “Bokuto’s a really great, a really sweet guy. I think you guys will be very happy.”  
For some reason, that just made me tear up more.  
“I don’t want to leave you.” It came out quietly.  
She gently disentangled herself and I lifted my head.  
She looked into my eyes steadily.  
“Sometimes you say the dumbest things! It’s not about leaving, Yuu. If you think this is leaving, too bad! You’re stuck with me forever.” I laughed and she continued on, smiling.  
“It’s about starting a new adventure. I’ll be just fine.”  
I stared back at her. I didn’t know how to repay her for the years of memories, for the love.  
She wiped her eyes. “Damn, you’ve got me crying now, too.”  
“Our apartment is just a waterworks, I guess!” I hugged her again and after a moment, her arms came up around my back.  
“You are, however, finishing out this lease,” she mumbled into my back.  
I stuck my tongue out, even though I knew she couldn’t see it. “Several leases. You’re not getting rid of me yet.”  
I wished that when I hugged her, I would never have to let go. “And don’t you forget it.”

…  
Three Years Later  
Note: (Is that an appropriate time frame lol? I don’t know)  
…

“I think that’s the last of it!” Ami deposited the cardboard box into the truck, panting. “Why are there forty volumes of Volleyball Fever? HOW MANY GAMES DID THEY PLAY?!?!”  
“Too many. Too many, and yet too few.” I looked at the truck, packed to the brim. When had I gotten so much stuff?  
“I wish there’d been more of a time skip, though,” Bokuto begrudged as he closed the trunk. “I want to know where they all ended up…”  
Ami shook her head. “If there was more, we’d be here all day. Yuu, I’m going to do a last sweep. Come check with me!”  
I nodded as she headed back inside, then started recounting the boxes through the window.  
“I can’t believe this is actually happening,” Bokuto marveled. I reached out and squeezed his hand.  
“Me neither.”  
I hesitated. “When I first met you, I had the feeling that I was going on a great adventure.”  
He perked up. “Really?”  
“Yep! I like to think of this as another one.”  
I held his gaze seriously. “Are you ready to eat my mediocre toast for the rest of your life?”  
He smiled, and I felt a tinge of excitement. Last night, I’d said goodbye to Ami, but it wasn’t a goodbye…not really. Not when we had so many more hello’s left.  
“I can’t wait.”  
We’d just entered mushy territory when I heard, “Yuuuuu!”  
I pulled back. “Yes?”  
Ami came back out to the doorway, waving an umbrella. “You forgot this!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, kind of a long note ahead! This chapter really stemmed from the desire to develop Yuu and Ami’s friendship more. I added Ami in as a bit of an afterthought in the third chapter, probably because I liked the idea of Yuu having a close friend she could talk to. It’s hard to leave someone you’ve been with for so long, even if it’s for a new experience!  
> Where was Ami in the first two chapters? Let’s just say she took that research opportunity in France! I like to think that in the final scene of the second chapter one of her postcards was taped to the fridge.  
> I have one more chapter left to go, and I’m not sure where to go with it. If you have a suggestion…please drop a comment! Thank you for the support - this fic is small but I really appreciate every interaction!  
> Until next time.  
> 104

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading so far! I know Ko is very similar to Koutarou, but for some reason once I thought of the name I couldn't call him anything else. I feel differently about this piece every time I read it, but there's one more part to go! Stay safe and thanks again!


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